Catalog Description:

An examination of the institutional elements of the American political system: Legislature, Executive, Judiciary, and Bureaucracy. These elements are examined at the national, state and local levels with a special emphasis on their roles in the development of public policy.

Credit

3 hrs.

Prerequisites

None

ADA Statement

Students with disabilities who believe that they need accommodations in this course are encouraged to contact the Disability Services Office at 936-273-7239; located in Building E, Office 103H as soon as possible to better ensure that such accommodations are implemented in a timely fashion. .

PURPOSE

This course, one of two introductory courses, has two objectives. The first is to teach you the nuts and bolts of U.S., state, and local government. Second, it seeks to develop the analytical skills needed to make better sense of government (both how and why it works or doesn’t work) and the subsequent impact it has on our daily lives. During the semester we will look at key actors (the President, Speaker of the House, Governor), institutions (Congress, the presidency, the courts), and processes associated with domestic and foreign policy, examining how these different components have evolved over time and interact to produce political outcomes.

COURSE OUTCOMES

In completing this course, you will

· Explore the institutional role of the legislative branch at both the state and national levels.

· Explain the institutional role of the executive branch, including the bureaucracy, at both the state and national levels.

· Discuss the institutional role of the judiciary at both the state and national levels.

· Analyze the development of civil rights and liberties.

· Acquire a basic understanding of both economic and foreign policy.

REQUIRED MATERIALS

-Stephenson et al., Introduction to American Government, third edition (Best Value Textbooks)

-Crain and Perkins, Introduction to Texas Politics, sixth edition (Thomson Wadsworth)

Topics

· Congress

· The Presidency

· The Federal Bureaucracy

· The Judiciary

· Civil Liberties and Civil Rights

· Economic Policy and Domestic Policy

· Foreign Policy

· Texas Legislative and Executive branches

· Texas Judiciary

PLAGIARISM and CHEATING; FOOD and PHONES

· Plagiarism and cheating will earn miscreants a failing grade for the course.

· Snacks are allowed in the classroom but no cooked food, please; turn off your cell phones and pagers during class or set them to vibrate or whatever it is they’re supposed to do silently. Flagrantly ignoring the cell phone mandate can earn you an expulsion from the course.

Instructor

Gary Brown

Office

A-220G Office Hours: M-W-F 7 a.m. to 9 a.m.; 10 a.m. to 11 am

T-TH 7 a.m. to 8:30 a.m.; 11:30 to 2 p.m.

Phone

Work 1(936) 273-7324

FAX 1(936) 273-7322

E-mail garyb@nhmccd.edu

Website http://ppl.nhmccd.edu/~garyb/index.html

semester / Location / Time

Spring 2006

T-Th 8:30 a.m. to 9:50 a.m.; 10:00 a.m. to 11:20 a.m. in A-231

PROPOSED CALENDAR

Week of 1/16- Topic One: Congress

1/23 Reading Assignment: Stephenson Ch. 9

Note! No class on 1/15-MLK Holiday

Week of 1/22- Topic Two: The Presidency

1/29 Reading Assignment: Stephenson, Ch. 10

Week of 2/05 Topic Three: The Federal Bureaucracy

Reading Assignment: Stephenson, Ch.11, pp. 327-337

Week of 2/12 Test One: Topics One, Two, Three

Test One will consist of objective questions.

Week of 2/12- Topic Four: The Judiciary

2/19 Reading Assignment: Stephenson, Ch. 12

Note! February 22 is District Conference Day: No classes

Week of 2/26- Topic Five: Civil Liberties

3/05 Reading Assignment: Stephenson, Ch. 3

Note! Midsemester break is March 12-18: No classes

Week of 3/19 Topic Six: Civil Rights

Reading Assignment: Stephenson, Ch. 3

Week of 3/26 Test Two: Topics Four, Five, Six

Test Two will consist of objective questions.

Week of 3/26- Topic Seven: Economic Policy and Domestic Policy

4/02 Reading Assignment: Stephenson, Ch. 14 and Ch. 15

Week of 4/02- Topic Eight: Foreign Policy

4/09 Reading Assignment: Stephenson, Ch. 16

Week of 4/02 Film paper is due. (April 2 and 3)

Note! Spring holiday is April 6-8

Week of 4/16 Test Three: Topics Seven, Eight

Test Three will consist of objective questions.

Week of 4/16 Topic Nine: The Texas Legislature

Reading Assignment: Crain, Ch. 5

Week of 4/23 Topic Ten: The Texas Executive

Reading Assignment: Crain, Ch. 6

Week of 4/30 Topic Eleven: The Texas Judiciary

Reading Assignment: Crain, Ch. 7

Week of 5/07 Final Exam: Topics Nine, Ten, Eleven

The final will consist of objective questions.

Attendance Expectations

· Attendance will be taken on a daily basis, beginning with the second meeting. A student who has missed more than six hours of class is in a position to be dropped from the roll. For whatever reason a student is able to fly under the radar and exceeds the allowed number of absences, under no circumstances will the grades of “A” be given to anyone who has missed more than six hours of class time. Remember that April 10 is the last day to drop and receive a "W."

EVALUATION

· There are three tests, a written paper, and a final exam in this course. Each grade counts as 1/5^th or 20% of your final average.

· Each test and the final exam will consist of multiple-choice questions. The final letter grade is based on the ten point scale, i.e., 90-100=A, 80-89.9=B, 70-79.9=C, 60-69.9=D, 59.9 and below=F. A final average of 79.9% is a C, so every point counts.

· Note: There is no extra credit available, so don’t even ask about it.

· Make-up tests: Just as I expect you to attend class, you are expected to take tests on scheduled test days. If you are not in your assigned seat for a scheduled test, it will be so noted. No phone-calls or E-mails are necessary; a test in your name will be carried to the Test Center in C-208; you have until the end of the following day to take the make-up. Failure to follow this procedure forfeits your right to take a make-up test. There is a ten-point penalty for missing the scheduled test. No make-ups will be allowed for the final exam. Note: Make-up tests are given the lowest priority in my role as an instructor.

· I allow students who choose to do so to prepare one 3" x 5" note card, front and back, containing as many class notes as possible, for use on a test. The notes must be tangential to the surface of the card, which will be checked before the test is distributed.